Highlights We propose a convenient metric to assess vulnerabilities to extreme events. Only road network topology and trip distribution data are necessary. An application for floods scenarios in a mid-sized city is proposed. Active modes and shorter trips tend to be more robust to floods. Planning for compact, mixed-use urban areas may be a path to resilience.
Abstract This paper aims to propose a convenient metric to evaluate the vulnerability of road networks to extreme events in small to medium-sized cities. We present the efficiency of alternative metric, which centers on how obstructions caused by a disaster tends to increase path lengths in the system. A case study was conducted as proof of concept to evaluate the impact of floods on individual modes of transportation in São Carlos, a medium-sized city in Brazil. The results show that walking and cycling tend to be more robust modes in the city while motorized individual transport tends to be more vulnerable and show that longer trips tend to be more vulnerable to floods, evidencing that car-oriented policy can worsen the network’s vulnerabilities. In contrast, compact city planning that encourages walking or cycling for relatively short distances may be more resilient to flooding.
Measuring urban road network vulnerability to extreme events: An application for urban floods
2021-01-01
Article (Journal)
Electronic Resource
English